BLACKFIELD: V (ATMOSPHERIC ROCK,Pop): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

Carried at its beginnings by the duo Aviv Geffen - Steven Wilson, Blackfield appeared over the course of the albums as the project of the Israeli multi-instrumentalist. If the shadow of the Englishman has always lurked not far from Geffen's, since "Welcome To My DNA" and "Blackfield IV", his contribution has only come down to his talents as a musician and studio genius. Three years after "Blackfield IV", the fifth opus marks Wilson's return to all the strategic positions he held for the band's first two records.

To have an indication of the tone of "Blackfield V", it is enough to notice that the cover is the same as the one on the first record, with the essential difference that the image is no longer blurred and drowned in a dusty darkness but crossed by a raw light on a blue ocean background. Listening will confirm this first intuition which consists in hearing "Blackfield V" as a kind of antithesis of "Blackfield", to the dark spleen of this one answers the soft colored melancholy of this one.

It is the notes played by the London Session Orchestra that inaugurate the record and give all its symphonic dimension to Blackfield's magnificently arranged pop. The tracks follow one another with balance and fluidity in playful pop-rock formats ('We'll Never Be Apart', 'Lately', 'The Jackal', 'Family Man' and the lively 'Undercover Heart' with its cathartic chorus) or superb dreamlike ballads ('How Was Your Ride?', 'Sorrys', 'October' with its lyrical piano, 'Life Is An Ocean' with Genesis accents and 'From 44 to 48'). The ample and spatial sound system, the work of the two friends who have joined forces with Alan Parsons' expertise, provides a homogeneous and crystal clear sound. A real feat when you consider that the album was recorded in seven different studios.

Steven Wilson is only marginally at the origin of the songs ('From 44 To 48' and 'Life Is An Ocean'), his active participation lies mainly in the mixing, production and interpretation of the songs, and his return is particularly striking in terms of vocals, in chorus with Geffen's fragile vibrato or in solo which he shares almost equally with Aviv Geffen. His interpretation, especially on the sublime 'October', is assured, deep and pure in the expression of emotions as well as in the tessitura. One cannot help but think that his presence has a strong stimulating effect on Geffen's creativity. So much so that Geffen s for the first time a boys' choir in 'Lately' and 'Undercover Heart', probably inspired by the one Wilson used in his last masterpiece, and innovates by experimenting with the instrumental ('Salt Water') and the sampling ('Lonely Soul'). The Israeli is not far from being at the height of his inspiration, composing some of his best tracks on his longest album.

In our review of "Blackfield IV", we rightly pointed out the album's lack of personality. This fifth episode finds a depth of soul that reminds us of the first opus and develops a real harmonic coherence. Due to its diversity, the overall high quality of all its compositions and the beauty of its melodies, "Blackfield V" is the most brilliant Blackfield album to date. - Official website

BLACKFIELD

V

BURNING SHED

ATMOSPHERIC ROCK